Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 1-11 in the reply filed on 4/22/2026 is acknowledged.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wefers(US 2002/0006464).
Regarding claims 1-7,9, Wefers teaches formation of porous, crunchy dried banana food product in which banana chunks are puffed and dried in less than atmospheric pressure at a pressure of 20-100mbar(15-75 Torr) under microwave radiation(para 62).
Wefers does not specifically teach that banana puree and banana flour is mixed to form a composition that is further dried. However, it would have been obvious to adjust the types and amounts of banana depending on the moisture content and texture desired in the final product.
Wefers teaches formation of banana chips which inherently contain natural sugar(sweetener). It would have been obvious to adjust the amount of banana present in the initial product and the type of banana(unripe vs ripe) depending on the sweetness desired.
Regarding claim 8, Wefers teaches that the banana chunks after pretreatment and before the puffing step have a moisture content of 40%(para 30).
Regarding claims 10-12, Wefers teaches that the chips are dried to a moisture content of 2-6%(para 101). It would have been obvious to adjust the microwave stages, time and power levels in order to achieve the desired final moisture content.
Conclusion
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/KATHERINE D LEBLANC/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1791
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